Persuasive Essay Topics

• Topic # 1: The first topic that I had in mind was trying to persuade a reader why one of the most famous cases in American history, Roe v. Wade, should be overturned by the Supreme Court.  I personally believe abortion should be illegal, so I know a lot about the topic.  I have  done some research in the past about this.  That decision was made based on right of privacy for women.  Many people today, sometimes known as the pro-life generation, believe that is no longer the case.  They believe that life starts at the moment of conception, so the mother doesn't have the right to decide if a person (her baby) lives or dies. One interesting fact about about this case is that the woman who sued to have the right to get an abortion, some years later, said she was pro-life.  She admitted that she made a mistake.  I think this topic would definitely pass the so-what test. I also know that I have to be careful not to interject my opinion too much and stay informative yet persuasive.
• Topic # 2: The second topic that I was thinking about writing about was why we should go back to the conventional way of dating.  I know many people make the remark of why people don't ask the girl's father for permission before they go out, or even ask the girl out in person and not by texting. Have people's social skills completely gone out the window?  People, teens especially, were more respectful back then.  I'd also talk about the positive aspects that came from dating the conventional way of "back then." I think that this essay would pass the so-what test with teenagers and would make parents think about this issue too.

Brainstorming Informative Essay Topic

   I think the kind of topics I'm leaning towards for writing my informative essay are more going to be about history or about some great places to visit around the world.  Some topics  that I thought about were:

-Best travel destinations in United States of America
-Seven wonders of the world

-Syrian conflict
   With these topics I thought it would be neat and interesting to talk about travel.  I love traveling and  I love talking about history.  So I thought it would be interesting to readers to combine travel with history.  With the Syrian conflict, I think this is one subject that will go down in history and you never know it could lead to some type of war. So I thought this would be a great chance to write about the subject. I would have great access with the new articles that are out there about what's happening in Syria too.
   I also thought about writing about the two countries, Ireland and/or Britain.  I have really wanted to visit those two places, so I thought I could provide some interesting background information on the two countries.

Practice Informative Writing

   Brownies!  My favorite dessert are brownies and I'm going to tell you how to make them.  Many people have their own little recipes on how to prepare them, but mine is fairly simple and it isn't very time consuming. 
   What I do first is take a generic brand of brownie mix.  It is very important not to use a box that has instructions on how to make them.  I call those kind of brownies "cardboard brownies" because to me they just don't taste the same.  After you get a generic brand of brownie mix, you need to add two eggs and one tablespoon of vegetable oil.  Warning: from personal experience you shouldn't use olive oil because it makes the brownies taste weird.  After, you've taken time to stir in the ingredients, you need to apply PAM to your pan.  Then, you need to transfer the brownie mixture into the pan.  Lastly, put the pan into the oven with the temperature at 350F.  It should take about fifteen to twenty minutes to bake the brownies.  When it's done, let it cool. and then lightly sprinkle powdered sugar to add a little something to it if you want. And wallah, now you have a great dessert to serve anyone!

Pre-Writing for Personal Narrative

#1: When I knew that I was a Republican, and that I believed in everything a Republican believes in.
- pro-life
- conservative
- limited government
- major part of who I am

#2: When I realized that I want to be a nurse.
- I want to help others.
- I never thought I would ever do anything related to the medical field.
- I will carry on the "family business."

My Summer Experience

   It's everyone's dream when they're younger to move as far away from their parents when they get old enough.  By older I mean when teenagers finally go to college.  When we're younger we think, "Oh I just can't wait to get away from my family, I want to go to college already!"  Now people might say this because they may think their parents embarrass them too much or they're just tired of all "the rules."  It could be for any number of other reasons too.  Well, I used to be one of those people.  I wanted to get out in the world and go to some hotshot college or university, and the only way to do that is by going to one that is fairly far away.
   Girls State 2013, in Vermillion, South Dakota.  I'm still in the butterfly phase of wanting to go far away to college.  After this experience, not so much... I was chosen with another girl from my school to represent my town in the 2013 South Dakota Girls State.  It was a week long experience on the campus of the University of South Dakota.  I had the whole college experience, right down to having a roommate, the extra long lines to take a shower, and all the walking to get from class to class.  I thought to myself before the trip, "This would be a great experience for me to have, to test whether or not I could stand being away from my family in college."  
   As you can imagine, by the second day I was already homesick!  I was thinking, "Why am I acting all weak. I haven't even been gone two days!"  Well I'll tell you what I learned from this experience.  From this trip, I was able to get my priorities straight.  I realized that it was more important to me to be close to family, than going to some hotshot college far away.  So I've decided that when I go to college, that I'm going to stay fairly close to my family, where I can see them at least every couple of days.

Writing...

   I'm one of those people who generally don't like to write for fun.  Most say I have neat handwriting, but I usually hate the thought of writing a paper or essay.  Maybe the only time that I actually start to like writing is when I get to write about a topic that I am really passionate about.  Things like that could include politics, history, etc.  All in all, I think I am a decent writer.
   I believe I have come a long way in improving my writing  skills over the years.  However, my weakest area in writing is personal essays.  I feel sometimes that I don't have enough to talk about in a personal essay.  When I'm assigned more of a research or topic essay, I feel I'm better at researching different points to talk about and am better able to elaborate on those details.  When I'm assigned a major writing assignment, and we're given ample time to complete it, I have my own way of doing it.  First, if there's any research that I need to do, I give myself enough time to do that.  I also make sure I have enough details to go with it also.  Second, I write a rough draft, that will have many red marks by the time I'm done revising it.  Finally, when I know I'm satisfied with my rough draft and have made all the revisions, I type my final draft. I'm also one of those people that even after I finish my rough draft is always looking for ways to make it better.
   I'm excited to be taking English 101 and 102 because I will be able to earn college credit sooner.  These courses will also let me have a feel for what college English will be like and what I can expect.  One apprehension that I have is that we might do a lot of papers and I won' t be ready or that I won't have the necessary writing techniques to make a very good paper.  I am looking forward, however, to getting the experience of writing research papers at the college level and learning the necessary skills to become a great writer.